KILL
THE CONDORS?
Audubon Society
Wind
farms in California threaten the survival of the state's condor
population. The National Audubon Society is launching a campaign
to stop the newest lethal threat to the California condor
- an Enron Corporation proposed wind farm literally next door
to US Fish and Wildlife Service designated critical California
condor habitat.
The California
condor is perched on the brink of extinction. A controversial
captive-breeding program has succeeded in restoring about
50 condors back into the wild in California. The California
condor is being given a rare second chance to roam the skies
again. Yet, at this critical moment in the recovery of the
California condor, Enron is proposing to build a giant condor
death trap. They plan to build 53 wind turbines at the crossroads
of the California condors' range.
Two hundred-foot
tall spinning blades would be placed in the heart of Condor
Pass. This must be stopped. Wind power may well play an important
role in America's energy future. But the choice here is clear.
If Enron builds this wind farm there is little future for
the California condor. The survival of the condor comes first.
In an effort to save the California condor, the Audubon Society
are launching the "Kill the Condor?" campaign.
Billboards
with this question and the web site www.condor-pass.org
are up this morning in Los Angeles and Houston, the corporate
home of Enron. To help educate Members of Congress, the Audubon
Society have placed advertisements in Capitol Hill publications
and are distributing a brochure to the Senate and House of
Representatives. The brochure can be viewed on the web site.
Daniel
P. Beard Senior Vice President for Public Policy said, "Fortunately,
we believe there is a solution. The Wind Energy Tax Credit
expired this summer. Without this federal tax subsidy, Enron
would not find it profitable to build the wind farm at Condor
Pass. We urge that when the Congress renews the Wind Energy
Tax Credit, it say that no wind farm can receive the federal
tax subsidy if it is within 10 miles of designated critical
condor habitat. We urge people to contact their Members of
Congress in support of the condor and this vital change in
the Wind Energy Tax Credit."
"People
can use the web site to send this message to Congress. The
California condor is one of the rarest of North America's
birds. The Fish and Wildlife Service spends a million dollars
a year to try and help this magnificent bird recover in the
wild. It is hard to imagine a worse idea than putting a condor
Cuisinart next door to critical condor habitat. Kill the Condor?
The answer must be no. We look forward to working with Members
of Congress and the public to ensure a future in the skies
for the California condor. "
Related books:
The
California Condor (Endangered in America)
On
the Brink of Extinction : The California Condor
SNYDER/SNYDER
THE CALIFORNIA CONDOR
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